Music class at the elementary level should be a time for exploring the many facets of music and discovering how it connects to all the other things we do.

Our explorations take us across the world, back in time to our American heritage, and into our imaginations. Through these explorations we learn to use our bodies and our minds in different ways. We also learn that music helps us express our feelings.

We learn to use the many tools of music. These include breathing, singing, rhythmic speech, instruments, body percussion, movement, language, melody, harmony, discipline, poetry, diction, music notation, patterns, drama, and inspiriation.

We explore connections between music and other areas of learning. We find Mathematics connections through counting, arithmetic, and fractions. We discover Language Arts connections in lyrics, vocabulary, and the similarity between musical phrases and sentences. We connect our Social Studies to the music of the times and places we study. We also connect music to Science, as we begin to learn about how sound is made.

Of course, we do not learn all of these things at once! We build on our past knowledge and abilities each year. Yet, as each year progresses and our understanding and abilties grow, we come to understand the motto of music at Alexander Henderson Elementary School:

Music connects to all things.

James Polk
Music